Sad Love Square: One Shots
by wonderfulwizardofthozz
Summary: A bunch of one shots that are all SAD or sad-ish. Appropriate content warnings are within each of the chapters as well as individual word counts. Marked as complete but will probably be updated sporadically. T just in case.
1. Black X

_A/N: Soulmate AU where whatever you write on yourself shows up on your soulmate's skin. Married Adrinette, one shot, cancer warning, sadness. 255 words. I'm so sorry._

* * *

Marinette hardly ever wrote on herself. Adrien didn't mind so much, but it was always a surprise to find someone's measurements on his arm. It was less surprising after they had kids—kids write on _everything_ , after all—but it was still weird.

He liked to leave little notes on himself that only she would find, but he wasn't in the practice now that their kids were out.

When Marinette started to get sick and complain of chest pain—but only on one side—he took some time off and took her to the best doctors he could afford. Being Gabriel Agreste's son still had _some_ perks after all.

The test results came back with surprising news: Marinette had breast cancer. They discussed treatment options and decided that a single mastectomy would be best.

Marinette handled the news quite well, but Adrien was in a haze. He only remembered a few things clearly about the meeting, mostly that they would draw an _X_ on the breast they weren't going to remove. They were going to write on Marinette, _his_ Marinette.

She tried to console him in the weeks leading up to the surgery, but he would have none of it.

After they wheeled her into the pre-op room, Adrien fled from Nino and Alya to find a room to himself. He leaned over the sink after unbuttoning his shirt to cool down.

 _They can't. I just want her to be okay._

He looked up only to find a black _X_ drawn on the left side of his chest.


	2. Charity Events

_A/N: So, not exactly as sad, but it has sad parts to it. This was inspired by a Tumblr post from otpprompts that reads as follows: "Imagine Person B of your OTP noticing that person A seems very distracted/down/perhaps even a little sick looking lately but person A keeps brushing off B's questions and concerns until they are dancing at some fancy event and suddenly A comes clean about being pregnant with B's baby and the dance just freezes as the reality of being parents sink in. Further reactions are up to you." 958 words. Anyway, thanks for reading! -wwot_

* * *

Marinette had been trying to act normal for weeks now, but Adrien knew something was up. He noticed when she was queasy every afternoon, how the trash in the bathroom didn't match up with how it normally did. Now, to make matters worse, she was adamantly denying what he was so sure about.

"I'm not pregnant, Adrien. Not pregnant. I'm not."

"Whatever you say, love bug."

Maybe she was just waiting to tell him at some fancy event. After all, there was that charity thing his father had set up. It was all about children, too. The perfect time to spring the news on him. The news that he already knew, of course. Surely she'd tell him then.

Mari stopped being sick but had grown withdrawn over the course of the week. She was up and out before he was even out of bed, leaving breakfast for him. She came home after he was sleeping, even though he could tell she'd been home when he wasn't there. It just wasn't like his wife. But why? Probably because she didn't want to let the cat out of the bag too soon. No matter; he'd see her at the event.

He helped her zip her dress up and choose an appropriate necklace, making idle chatter all the while. Marinette stayed silent aside from the occasional comment.

Adrien could barely contain his excitement. He was going to find out for sure tonight that he was going to be a father! Though, at this point, it seemed ridiculous that she waited. Maybe she wanted to get his first reaction on camera. Wouldn't that make for a good tabloid!

They were some hours into the event when he took her to the dance floor for a slow waltz. He bent his head and whispered to her, "So, when were you going to tell me the news?"

She pulled back, tripping on the step. "What news?"

Adrien got them back on track. "About the baby! You can't act like I didn't notice. I asked you about it a week ago, and a week before that…"

"I'm not pregnant, Adrien."

"Come on, Marinette. You forget who takes out the trash. You were getting sick, every day, all at the same time. You _have_ to be pregnant!"

Marinette turned her head away, fighting tears. "I'm not pregnant. I had a miscarriage."

Adrien stopped, refusing to let the news sink in. "What?"

Mari guided them to the nearest chairs while she continued. "I had a miscarriage. I lost the baby, Adrien. I didn't want you to worry about it. There was nothing to be done." She hid her face from him, wiping each tear before it had a chance to run down her cheek.

"Mari, why didn't you tell me? I know you just told me, but this isn't something you should've been dealing with alone." He took her hand and kissed it. "I'm sorry for prying into it when you weren't ready, though. I had no idea."

She leaned over into him, crying harder. He stood them up and led her to a more private area, waving off anybody with a camera. Adrien held her for a while, rubbing small circles into her back.

"I just feel like a failure, Adrien. I can rescue stupid Paris, but I can't even carry a baby?" She sniffled and tucked herself closer to him.

"You're not a failure, Mari. Did you go to a doctor? What did they say?"

"She said I probably had the birth control still in my system, which probably flubbed everything up. That means we didn't wait long enough. I thought two months was fine." She sniffled again, shaking her head. "But Alya was only off of it for two weeks before _she_ got pregnant, and she didn't have any issues at all! Not even morning sickness! You heard how proud Nino was when the baby was even born on her due date, too." Marinette stayed still against Adrien's chest.

Adrien rubbed her neck. "Okay, Alya didn't have problems, but that's hardly shocking. You know how many sisters she has. Her family's more resilient to carrying children."

"But my mom didn't have problems with me."

"What about your grandmothers?"

"Well, both of them had a hard time getting pregnant."

"See? There's hope yet. So we wait another few months before we try again." Adrien shrugged, kissing her hair.

"I don't want to be pregnant while I would've been pregnant with this one."

"Then we wait longer. We'll get through it, Marinette. I know we will. In the meantime, we'll rescue Paris time and again. We'll raise our kids in a safer world. We'll have a couple, adopt one or two, and they'll be safe. It'll all be worth it."

"I like the idea of adoption."

"I thought you might. Wanna get back out there?"

"Yeah. We can. Can I tell you something first, though?"

"Always. What is it?"

Marinette bit her lip, taking off some of the lipstick. "I really was going to tell you tonight that I was pregnant. If I'd stayed pregnant. You weren't wrong about that. I'm sorry for keeping it from you."

"I'm a little upset, but I get it." He leaned down and kissed her quickly, stealing even more of her lipstick. "I love you. I'm sorry you were dealing with it all alone."

"I didn't tell you. It's not your fault." She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him again, trying to take back the lipstick he'd stolen. "I love you, too."

* * *

Two years later, at the same charity event, Marinette shared her news with the reporters outside. "I'm pregnant! With twins!"

Adrien looked like he might fall over—it made for the best tabloid cover of the decade.


	3. Tuesday

_A/N: Hey guys, I'm back with this (in case you thought I'd forgotten about it). Anyway, here we are. Prompt is from otpprompts on tumblr: "Person A has a signature item that they're never seen without. One day, Person B finds the signature item in an envelope along with a random letter." Words: 2094 / Rating: T_

 _As promised, it's really sad, but the ending is happier. Much thanks to Leisey for being an amazing fanfiction wife and previewing it for me (and being the first person to cry while reading it!). She says, "Check yourself before you wreck yourself, because this wrECKED ME" xoxo -wwot_

* * *

The Tuesday was like any other—Adrien had left for the office before Marinette got up, leaving her lunch on the counter for her. She went in a little bit later, stopping by his desk for a few stolen kisses and dropping off whatever he'd inevitably forgotten. She sat on his desk for lunch while they talked about upcoming lines, about having children sometime in the future, about anything and everything until he sprang a surprise business trip on her.

"It's just for a week. I promise." He rubbed her knuckles and kissed her wedding band.

"What's it about, anyway? Our anniversary's this week."

His eyes got wide. "Oh. I—I'm sorry. It has something to do with Papillion."

"But he's been in hiding for years. Do you really need to, Adrien?"

He fought tears. "I leave tonight."

Marinette took a deep breath. "Can you at least tell me where you're going?"

Adrien shook his head. "It'll be worth it, I swear. I won't leave you, Marinette."

She nodded. "Okay. But you have to come back to me."

"I will. I swear." He kissed her ring again and then kissed her on the lips. "I love you."

Marinette hiccupped, wiping her tears as they got to her chin. "I love you, too."

It was the last Tuesday she ever saw him.

* * *

Six months passed. Marinette became withdrawn, and she quit responding publicly to the search for her husband. She threw herself into her work, only stopping when Alya dragged her home and put her to bed once or twice a week. It was on one of these nights that Alya found a package sloppily addressed to Marinette.

"Do you want me to open it for you?"

"Is it Adrien's handwriting?"

Alya didn't bother with inspecting it further as she helped Marinette up the stairs. "No."

"Then no. I'll look at it tomorrow. Thank you." Marinette turned over in bed—still in her pantsuit—and pulled a quilt over her. "Thanks for seeing me home. Have a good night."

Alya chewed on her lip, unsure if she should leave her like that. "Nino and your parents said to send their love."

"Send them mine back. Goodnight, Alya."

Alya turned the light off on her way out, sure that Marinette wouldn't sleep; she'd been surviving on coffee for most of the time that Adrien had been gone anyway.

Three sleepless hours later, Marinette stared at the package in her bra and pants, her shirt and blazer discarded for comfort. She took a deep breath and sliced through the tape with a kitchen knife, careful not to disturb the contents. She didn't recognize the handwriting, but she could make out numbers on the individual packages, and an envelope had a _1_ written on it, so she opened it first. It was dated for one month prior.

 _Ms. Marinette,_

 _Your dear Adrien has told me much about you. If you're reading this, that means that I'm the bearer of the unfortunate news that he has passed away, but he had some things he wanted me to tell you in case that happened._

 _He says to stay strong and to never forget him—as if you could. He loves you dearly. He said that you would know what to do with the included packages, and he told me to number them according to his wishes. I've followed his wishes with one exception: I thought you might like a lock of his hair to keep, so I've labelled that as next instead of the things he had when he first came to me._

 _I feel like I should tell you that story, but he begged me not to. What I can tell you is that he wasn't in good shape when I found him, and I don't exactly live in an area that's easy to access. I don't know how he found me, but he did, and I did everything I could to patch him up. I do wish I had been successful; he told me he'd promised you he'd come back, and he so hates to break that._

 _Unless he wakes, which is unlikely at this point, I'll bury him next to my daughter who died some years ago; he will not be forgotten._

 _I'll leave you with his last words to me: "Tell her how beautiful she is. Tell her the moon rises and sets in her eyes. She is my everything, my world, my dearest treasure. Tell her that our time together was miraculous. And tell her…tell her I love her and that I'll see her again in the next life. Goodbye, Marinette."_

 _I wish you all the best. —MA_

Marinette dropped the letter and sobbed.

Tikki watched on, silent.

When Marinette dried her tears, she reached for the small bundle with a _2_ on it. Inside, as promised, was a lock of Adrien's hair, tied together with a blue thread. She brought it to her lips and planted the softest of kisses on it before laying it carefully on the counter and beginning with the twine on the next part of the package.

His wallet tumbled out; his cards, ID, and a few euro still sat inside where they belonged. A worn picture of their wedding day was tucked in with a note in Adrien's neat cursive that only said " _I love you_ " with a small heart drawn as ending punctuation. With it was his phone, which was unsurprisingly dead. She'd charge it later and hopefully get a better clue of what could've happened.

She moved to the fourth bundle, the smallest of them all. Marinette caught the wedding ring before it could clatter to the ground. If she doubted for a minute that it was his, she could see their wedding date engraved on the inside of the band. She slipped it over her thumb and kissed it much like he had hers on their last Tuesday together.

The next one was a similar size, but still a bit larger. A note from Adrien was enclosed with this as well: " _Tell Plagg I'm sorry._ " His miraculous sat in the paper, and Marinette's face contorted with more tears for a few minutes. When she collected herself, she slipped the ring on her other thumb.

"Marinette?"

"Plagg. Hey." Marinette sniffed and rubbed a thumb against Plagg's cheek while Tikki floated over. "Doing alright?"

"Massive headache."

Marinette nodded. "Adrien said to tell you that he's sorry." Her voice broke on the last word and she hid her face in her hands.

They let Marinette cry more, Tikki getting her a glass of water and Plagg a bit of cheese. "There's two more, Marinette."

Marinette nodded. "I know. I just need another minute."

Plagg nuzzled up against her neck. "Take your time."

Marinette steeled herself up and cut the twine on the bundle with a _6_ on the tag. She undid the paper carefully and stared in awe, tears coming in spurts for entirely different reasons. The butterfly miraculous laid there, shining as though a battle hadn't been fought for it. "He won. Adrien won." She laughed, scrubbing the dampness from her face. "Adrien won." Marinette sank to the floor and let the butterfly fall to the cold tile with her. Tikki and Plagg cuddled with her, not bothering with telling her what to do with it; she already knew.

"Can someone hand me the last of it, please?"

Number seven; their lucky number for totally arbitrary reasons. His watch was in it, and Marinette found It odd that it was the last. She scoffed, her tears all gone. "He's probably leaving me with some terrible pun. 'I'll always be watching you.'" Marinette rolled her eyes. "He would do that, too." She turned it over to the back and opened the secret compartment; she'd commissioned a local watchmaker to do it for their first anniversary, and he'd hardly taken it off since, so it became as signature as the miraculous and his wedding ring.

A set of coordinates was written on a scrap of paper. Marinette scrambled to her computer to turn it on so she could look up the coordinates. They led her to an island somewhere in Norway. She bought tickets on an impulse, justifying with telling herself that she deserved a break for as much work as she'd been doing since Adrien left.

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Marinette?"

"Yes, Tikki. I have to at least see where he's buried before I tell everybody that my husband is dead."

Tikki and Plagg stared at each other and shrugged. They knew there was no talking a grieving Marinette out of anything that might help her heal.

Marinette slipped the watch onto her wrist and smiled sadly at how loose it was on her. "I'll see you guys in the morning. I should probably sleep."

Marinette wandered up and changed into an old shirt of Adrien's; the smell lulled her to sleep while Tikki filled Plagg in on Marinette's condition.

* * *

Marinette rented a car as soon as she got into Norway; there was little light left since it was December, but she followed the roads as close to the coordinates as she could even as the moon rose, sharing only a tiny sliver of light with her dark road.

She arrived at a little house a little while after she crossed a bridge. She cut the engine off and pulled Adrien's rings and watches from her purse and put them all back on; the butterfly miraculous had been returned to its rightful place and would be bestowed when the time was right. Tikki and Plagg settled into her coat pocket, snuggling up together.

Marinette took a deep breath and wandered out onto the property with a flashlight, praying the owner would be fine with a trespasser. She spied two crosses in the distance, so she made her way to them.

Carved into one was the name _Elise_. Marinette was sure that it was the daughter of whoever had sent the letter, which meant that the other cross had to be—

"Marinette?"

She wheeled, finding a small man with a lantern. "Who are you?"

"My name is Mohammed. I see that you got the package."

Marinette nodded. "Is Elise your daughter?"

"She is."

"So that makes that…" She weakly gestured at the other cross.

"My wife, Sophia." He laughed sadly. "She was Catholic. It was an interesting marriage. Here, come inside." He offered his arm to her, which Marinette took quietly despite her growing confusion.

"Sophia and I met in college. We were both born and raised in France, but we went to Spain for a study abroad trip, which is how we fell in love. I've never met a woman with such spunk, though Adrien says that you rival her. I don't think either family was happy initially, but we made it work, and everybody came to love each other. We moved here on a whim, but she passed shortly after childbirth. Elise was dreadfully early, so she didn't last much longer. That was about this time three years ago."

"Y-you have my sympathies."

"Thank you." Mohammed patted her hand and let her in the door. "Now, don't scare the man; he's not expecting you."

"What?"

"I'll leave you to him."

Adrien looked up from his cot. "Marinette?"

"Adrien!" Marinette flung herself at him and kissed him, touching his face and chest as though he would disappear if she let him go.

He turned his head away enough to start talking. "Easy, Mari."

She pulled back enough to look at him. "Easy? I thought you were dead!"

"I thought I was, too. Mohammed said I started miraculously improving about a week ago."

"That's when I got his letter. And, uh, the rest of it. Oh!" Marinette took his wedding ring and slid it back on the appropriate finger, doing the same for the miraculous. "You made me open the watch last and I was afraid you'd left me with some awful pun. 'I'll always be watching over you,' or something equally as stupid." She laughed, holding onto his arm as he wiped her tears away.

Adrien laughed and coughed. "I'm disappointed that I didn't think of that."

"You would be." Marinette pressed her forehead to his. "I missed you. You're never allowed to leave me. Never again."

"I won't. I swear."

She hugged him tightly. "I'm so glad I found you."

"Hey, Mari, what day is it?"

She frowned; she'd long stopped keeping track. She pulled out her phone and started laughing. "It's Tuesday, Adrien. It's Tuesday."


End file.
